Bosses can be hauled up over failure to vaccinate workers

PUTRAJAYA: Action can be taken against employers who fail to get their workers, who are provided with accommodation in hostels, vaccinated against Covid-19.

They can be charged under the Workers’ Minimum Standards of Housing and Amenities or Act 446.

Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri M. Saravanan said these employers risked being fined up to RM50,000 per worker.

The effort to get the workers inoculated is important to stop infectivity among the employees, local or foreigners, which contributed to the number of Covid-19 clusters nationwide.

“Employers who fail to ensure that their workers who live in the staff hostels are vaccinated will be committing an offence under Act 446,” he said.

The minister said the Emergency Ordinance (Workers’ Minimum Standards of Housing and Amenities) 2021 was gazetted on Feb 17, which now allows the law to be implemented in Sabah and Sarawak.

Saravanan said under the Act, it was compulsory for employers to provide accommodation to all their foreign workers and failing to adhere to this new legislation, all offences committed under the Workers’ Minimum Standards of Housing and Amenities Regulations were compoundable.

The ministry, he said, was also planning to rope in six ministries to ensure effective enforcement.

“Enforcement will concentrate mainly on the 75,000 employers with foreign workers in three states – Selangor, Johor and Kuala Lumpur – and in three sectors with highest positive Covid-19 cases which are manufacturing, construction and services,” he said.

Saravanan said his ministry was also working with the Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry in preparing temporary accommodation for foreign workers who were transferred from their original living quarters that did not meet Act 446 standards.

The temporary accommodation encompasses centralised labour quarters that have been certified by the Labour Department, as well as hotels registered under the ministry.

“We are also coordinating with the Public Land Transport Agency to obtain a list of bus operators who provide service to ferry the workers to and from workplace,” he said.